the final chapter: mint moroccan tea

Today is the last day of Chanukah, and today is the last post on Everyday Kosher.

Growth is a beautiful thing.

As mothers, we all have our ways to cope, deal with the day to day on a day by day in the hopes of navigating life, transforming and growing.  In 2012, this blog became one of my personal projects, I was a young mom of two adorable little girls - 5 and 6 at the time. I went on exploring and sharing the kosher joys of living in Quebec, from scouting honey and lavender farms to sharing all kinds of recipes that my heart desired.

Today, I outgrew this blog.  My growth has taken a turn towards new aspirations, projects and innovations, hence the moment has come for me to temporarily close the chapter on Everyday Kosher. I spoke from the heart, you listened from the heart, and for this, I am forever grateful. Kosher blogging is a beautiful art form, I met amazing and talented people along the way.  I cannot express the extent of respect, the admiration I have for fellow kosher bloggers. Thank you for all those who supported and savored recipes from this blog, please continue to do so. I look forward to sharing new initiatives, please feel free to follow me on Instagram @leslieperezpr for updates, inspiration or to simply connect.

I conclude this blog with a recipe of mint Moroccan tea.. so relax, sip a cup of soothing tea and continue to read through this blog. More importantly though,  continue to gather your families and friends around your table. The kitchen is the heart of our homes.

 Enjoy and le'chaim!

Moroccan mint tea

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Total time: 10 min.  | Serves 6

INGREDIENTS
1 tablespoon loose Chinese gunpowder green tea

5 cups boiling water

3 to 4 tablespoons sugar, or to taste

1 large bunch fresh mint (1 ounce)

Special Equipment


1 to 1 ½ quart teapot

INSTRUCTIONS
1.  Put tea in teapot and pour in 1 cup boiling water, then swirl gently to warm pot and rinse tea. Strain out and discard water, reserving tea leaves in pot.

2. Add remaining 4 cups boiling water to tea and let steep 2 minutes. Stir in sugar (to taste) and mint sprigs and steep 3 to 4 minutes more.

Serve in small heatproof glasses. Enjoy!

"Give back a lot, feed people a lot and love the little things in life a WHOLE lot." - Leslie Perez

honeyed chicken with caramelized onions, chestnuts and prunes

After a BIG day of grocery shopping and visiting a Healthy Food and Living Expo at Palais des Congres, a mean headache struck.  Not prone to headaches, this was one of those migraines that would leave any mama winding down on a couch while kids totally taking advantage of the situation. 

"Go take your shower please... close the TV... close the TV... eat dinner... eat the fish... go to sleep... GO TO SLEEP!" I repeated... I felt like a robot or on auto-pilot. For some reason, the girls were non-reactive. I totally shpieled knowing kids are kids.. even when I hoped they can empathize like adults.  I abruptly shut the TV demanding they eat the fish I made for dinner" that's when one of my kids threw a fit. She refused to eat... she refused just about everything I asked of her. The other child, though at a stagnating pace, took her shower, ate dinner, and even surprised me by doing the dishes and stacking everything away... I totally felt nachas amid the challenge. I thanked her for listening.

I had no me-time that night, it took the kids 2 hours to finally fall asleep. Whoever said motherhood is perfect? It's not. The next time you have a headache know you are not alone, this happens to all of us. Looking back, I will have a good talk with my children about the situation experienced and make sure we understand each other.

"The joy of motherhood comes in moments, there will be hard times, and frustrating times, but amid the challenges there are shining moments of joy and satisfaction."  

~ Elder M. Russell Ballard

Motherly food for thought aside, Purim can be an overwhelming time for parents. there are so many things to prepare from costumes, mishloach manot to fasting and feasting. With all this in mind, here is a sweet chicken recipe for your family dinner or Purim feast.  A couple of years ago my mom made a delicious caramelized onion chicken recipe for our Purim dinner, which became my inspiration for this dish.  The truth is caramelized onion in chicken is delicious in itself, but I love the added sweetness from the prunes and texture from the chestnuts. Happy Purim!

honeyed chicken with caramelized onions, chestnuts and prunes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Total Time: 1 hour  | Serves 4 |  Meat
INGREDIENTS	INSTRUCTIONS
4-6 chicken pieces, bone-in chicken thighs preferred 1 tsp cinnamon  1/2 tsp of paprika 2 tbsp of honey  3 tbsp of olive oil 3  white onions, sliced 250 g dry prunes or apricots 250 g of chestnuts  3/4 cup of boiling water   Kosher salt, to taste Freshly ground pepper, to taste SERVE WITH 1/3 cup whole toasted blanched almonds (optional) Couscous	1.  In a cast-iron skillet or heavy bottom pot, on medium heat,  drizzle oil,  add the sliced onions, the cinnamon, and paprika. Stir well and add the chicken pieces one at a time, cook for 2 minutes, coating all sides of the chicken and then top with 1/2 cup of water. 2.  Drizzle the honey over the chicken, coating properly, sprinkle salt and freshly ground pepper on each piece and the chestnuts. Cook for 10-15 minutes.  3. Keep an eye on the chicken, lower heat to simmer (low-medium), add 1/3 cup of water, allow to reduce for another 20-25 minutes. Cover the pot halfway. Flip the chicken pieces a couple of times, add the prunes, spreading them a bit everywhere in the pot at this point, cook for another 10 minutes. You want to see a golden brown color on both sides of the chicken thighs accompanied by caramelized onions, and softened prunes.

challah french toast with orange blossom

This french toast recipe is a perfect dish to serve at a Moroccan-inspired family brunch. I love this recipe because I get to twist-up my leftover Challah bread with one of my favorite Moroccan aromas. The soft and succulent texture obtained when using the brioche-like bread makes challah my bread of choice for French toast. I was excited when I crossed Ina Garten's recipe. The added orange zest coupled with droplets of orange blossom is what modern Sephardi cooking is made of, truly a match made for breakfast! Enjoy!

challah french toast with orange blossom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Prep time 10 min | Total Time 30 min | Yields 8 | Dairy Adapted from Ina Garten: Barefoot Contessa Family Style
INGREDIENTS	INSTRUCTIONS
6 extra-large eggs 1 1/2 cups milk 1 teaspoon grated orange zest 1/2 teaspoon orange blossom water, plus more for a light sprinkle on top 1 tablespoon honey, plus more for serving 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 1 large loaf challah Unsalted butter Vegetable oil Confectioners' sugar	1.  Heat oven to 250 degrees. 2.  In a large shallow bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, orange zest, 1/2 tsp orange blossom, honey, and salt. Slice the challah in 3/4-inch thick slices. 3.  Soak as many slices in the egg mixture as possible for 5 minutes, turning once. 4.  Heat 1 tablespoon unsalted butter and 1 tablespoon oil in a very large saute pan over medium heat. Add the soaked bread and cook for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, until nicely browned. 5.  Place the cooked French toast on a sheet pan and keep it warm in the oven. 6.  Fry the remaining soaked bread slices, adding butter and oil as needed until it's all cooked. 7. Serve hot with a light drizzle (not too much, its a very powerful ingredients), confectioners' sugar and/or honey.